Duke - Wisconsin Pulls 17.1 Overnight TV Rating, Highest For Title Game in 18 Years [UPDATE]

Duke and Wisconsin played a thrilling National Championship game, with the Blue Devils overcoming a 9-point second half deficit to defeat the Badgers, 68-63, and fans were glued to the TV: The game registered the highest overnight rating for the Title game in 18 years.

Overnight ratings don’t mean a ton, as they go up or down after all the markets are tallied, but a 17.1 is the best such number since Arizona upset Kentucky in 1997. Not bad for an unwatchable sport.

Frank Martin, the South Carolina coach, is the early leader for tweet of the day:

Last nt's game drew a 17.1 overnight rating on CBS. Our "unwatchable"game had its most-watched championship n18 years. Dont like, dont watch
— Frank Martin (@FrankMartin_SC) April 7, 2015

Makes you wonder what Duke and Kentucky might gotten.

[UPDATE: CBS just announced that the Duke/Wisconsin game averaged 28.3 million viewers, also the highest number for the game in 18 years. For some perspective, Game 7 of the World Series in 2014 averaged 23.5 million viewers.]